The NBA Finals defeat will continue to sting for the Phoenix Suns in the coming days, especially for young guys like Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton who tasted their most bitter loss in their young careers.
The fact that they dropped four games to Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks surely makes everything tougher to bear, with Booker even uttering an instant reaction as he saw their title hopes slip away in Game 6 on Tuesday.
Ayton, meanwhile, was a bit more even-keeled. After the game, even though he admitted that he's still reeling from the loss, he also took the good with the bad. The vastly improved Suns big man spoke to Booker in the locker room, reminding him that they've barely scratched the surface (via Bleacher Report).
“This is just the beginning. Now we know what we need to do, and no less. We're gonna keep each other accountable for the rest of our careers.”
Just in case people forget, Booker is only 24 years old while Ayton is two years younger. Mikal Bridges is also only 24 years old, while Cameron Johnson is only a year older. So clearly, the future is limitless for the Suns.
It also helps that at a young age, Ayton already experienced a huge setback, which will only make him and the young Suns better, no matter how worn-out that sounds (via Bright Side of the Sun).
“We the Suns know what it takes now and that’s all I’m going off of, to be honest. I mean, nobody really expected us to even, you know, be here. I know people talk about injuries of other teams and stuff like that, but at the end of the day, we playing ball and I’m just really happy how the guys had a wonderful season playing together to get us where we are today.
Deandre Ayton is a wise man.